Pickup truck sinks in lake on live TV during boat launch mishap
It was a slippery slope
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Sometimes a boat launch is more like a boat slip.
This truck sank in Springfield Lake on live TV as it was putting a boat into the water. (Sangamon Co. Rescue Squad)
A pickup truck launching a motorboat into Lake Springfield in Springfield, Ill., was caught on camera as it slid into the water and sank during a live news report.
WCIS reporter Jakob Emerson was on the scene reporting on a proposed project to build a second artificial lake in the area as an economic development program as the white GMC Sierra pickup backed down the ramp and the driver got out to release the boat it was towing from its trailer.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In the now viral video, the truck can be seen behind Emerson sliding into the water itself and taking just 25 seconds to become fully submerged. Fortunately, no one was it at the time.
Sangamon County Emergency Management Office Director Bill Lee said the Spaulding Dam slip poses a unique challenge and was coated in a slippery layer of algae.
"Most of them have a very gradual decline, this one seems to drop off relatively quick," Lee told WCIS. "It's always best to park at the top of the ramp and go down and walk the ramp to identify if that thick algae is there and makes it real slick."
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According to the City Water, Light and Power department one to three similar incidents are reported on the lake each year, but that the launches are cleaned monthly.
Springfield Mayor Jim Langfelder told the news outlet the city would investigate the incident to determine exactly what happened and if any changes needed to be made to the launch.